Kiyomori’s Visit to Nunobiki Waterfall: The Ghost of Yoshihira Taking Revenge on Nanba

Utagawa Yoshifusa

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This triptych of prints features the ghost of the warrior Akugenta Yoshihira (1141–1160) taking revenge on his murderer Nanba Jirō, a tale based on the Tale of Heiji. The dramatic story is illustrated over three prints. Akugenta causes lightening to strike his murderer Nanba at the center of the composition, and also shoots flames at his enemy Taira no Kiyomori, who confronts Akugenta on the right. The landscape background is treated in ink monochrome, while Nunobiki waterfall is highlighted in blue against the darkness. Yoshifusa, a pupil of Kuniyoshi and a colleague of Yoshitoshi, continued the Utagawa school's dramatic and bombastic presentations of warrior stories.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.

Metropolitan Museum of Art